Geopolitics / Europe

Jul 26, 2013 at 14:54 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Armenia’s plans to hand over the state’s remaining stake in its natural gas monopoly to Gazprom has opposition politicians furious over the prospect of ceding total control of…

Jul 26, 2013 at 14:52 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Romania announces that construction will begin soon on a natural gas pipeline to neighboring Moldova, in a project that will underbid Gazprom prices and challenge Russia’s control in…

Jul 19, 2013 at 23:27 | John Daly

The implosion of the Soviet Union in 1991 produced three petro-states – the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan.Of these, Azerbaijan has the longest history, having begun producing petroleum…

Jul 19, 2013 at 22:53 | Editorial Dept

We’ve been holding on to this nugget for some time, waiting for one of the last pieces of the puzzle to near position. Now it’s time: Bosnia and Herzegovina has…

Jul 19, 2013 at 22:38 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Now that Croatia has joined the European Union, Russia will work hard and fast to get its foothold in the Balkan country’s energy market, where location gives it…

Jul 15, 2013 at 18:19 | John Daly

The dire state of the Greek economy is well known to its European Union partners. Further hammering the economy are Greece’s massive oil imports. According to the U.S. government’s Energy…

Jul 02, 2013 at 17:06 | Daniel J. Graeber

The British government got an earful from Kazakhstan this week despite Prime Minister David Cameron's economic outreach. The prime minister arrived Sunday in Kazakhstan to help launch one of the…

Jun 10, 2013 at 16:54 | Charles Kennedy

Let’s watch Turkey’s ruling party elite hedge their bets over Prime Minister Recep Erdogan’s longevity, as protests continue into their second week. The ruling Justice and Development Party…

Jun 07, 2013 at 16:47 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: If Prime Minister Erdogan continues to mismanage a crisis in the form of 7 days running of mass anti-government protests, the highly influential Gulen Movement will surface to…

Jun 07, 2013 at 16:39 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: As Greece sells off its state-owned natural gas company (DEPA/DEFSA) under insolvency pressure, a minor Russian holding steps in as a proxy for Russian giant Gazprom. Whoever gains…

Jun 04, 2013 at 17:03 | Charles Kennedy

Five days of protests in Turkey highlight the government’s horrific crisis mismanagement and serves as a wake-up call for the ruling party that was caught off guard, basking in its…

May 31, 2013 at 13:38 | Editorial Dept

We’ve noted recently that Turkey is a hot venue for both the majors and the juniors, but that there still hasn’t been that one big find to put the country…

May 31, 2013 at 13:21 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Shale gas explorers in Poland get a bit of a boost (but not enough) as the government prepares to postpone shale gas production tax collection for five years…

May 30, 2013 at 16:59 | Economywatch

Despite possessing better financing and greater energy benefits compared to its competitors (namely the Nabucco pipeline), the proposed South Stream pipeline has faced considerable opposition in Europe – by countries…

May 24, 2013 at 13:34 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: The EU’s new offshore oil and gas exploration legislation is designed to prevent another Gulf of Mexico incident and will force explorers to submit special hazard reports and…

May 17, 2013 at 14:06 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Kurdistan is a good place to be right now for E&P companies, but navigating the playing field of power brokers and gatekeepers is a challenging necessity if you…

May 16, 2013 at 17:18 | Charles Kennedy

Protests over high energy prices brought down the Bulgarian government in February, and elections last week have brought back essentially the same government so we can expect continued protests and…

May 03, 2013 at 15:44 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: The Polish government claims that EuroPolGaz negotiated a controversial MOU with Russian Gazprom in early April without its knowledge, and now it’s all about damage control over a…

Mar 08, 2013 at 10:48 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Bulgaria’s scrapping of a Russian pipeline deal to carry Russian and Caspian oil to Greece is a response to the government’s collapse in February over energy prices that…

Mar 01, 2013 at 09:44 | Editorial Dept

Bottom Line: Russia’s announcement this week that a Gazprom subsidiary had signed a deal for Israel’s offshore Tamar gas field will exponentially strengthen Gazprom’s prowess in the massive Asian LNG…